Alaskan Sweethearts (6 page)

“Murphy took the first haul all for himself. I was due the second half.”

Scarlett looked at him skeptically. “My grandmother said my grandfather always claimed he had lots of money, but there was none left when he died.”

“I can’t believe that,” the older man said.

Scarlett shrugged. “It doesn’t matter now. My grandmother will say she forgives you. In fact, she sent you a letter.”

Scarlett reached for her briefcase and snapped it open. She pulled out the envelope and handed it to him.

“This is for you.”

The old man took the envelope.

“She always was a good girl. My Maggie,” he said then, relief in his voice.

Scarlett looked thunderstruck. “What’d you call her?”

“Maggie. I called her ‘my Maggie.’ Started out as ‘my Magpie’—you know on account of the shiny stuff we were taking out of our creek. Magpies like shiny things and Maggie liked the gold.”

“She never let any of us call her that,” Scarlett said. “She got real mad if anyone even tried calling her Maggie. She never mentioned Magpie. She always made people call her Margaret. Very formal. Except us kids, of course. We called her Granny. I don’t think even my grandfather called her Maggie. Not that I was around then, but she would have mentioned it.”

“Of course he didn’t call her that.” The old man stood then, looking younger than he had in years. “It was something special between the two of us. Her marrying him didn’t change that one bit.”

“But—” Scarlett sputtered, looking bewildered.

“Let’s go look at that house,” his grandfather declared as he started walking to the door. “See if it’s fit to live in.”

Joey picked up his stuffed bear and followed the old man.

“It’s raining,” Hunter pointed out. He wasn’t so sure it was fair to have Scarlett look at the house, thinking it could be hers, when it was obvious there was a catch someplace that would prevent it from happening.

“Ah, this weather will be cleared up by the time we get out to the ranch,” his grandfather said as he turned around with a grin. “What’s life without a little risk anyway?”

There wasn’t much Hunter could say to that. Not when both Scarlett and his grandfather were looking so eager to see the house. Hunter tried to remember the last time anyone had been inside the structure. He supposed it was two years ago when Mr. Cleary’s dog had chased a rabbit through the broken window in the basement. The man had confessed the fact to Hunter and the two of them had gone over to the house and lured the rabbit out with some carrot scraps.

“No point in taking all the vehicles,” Hunter’s grandfather said as the four of them walked to the café door. He looked up at Scarlett. “I’ll take Joey here with me in my pickup and Hunter can escort you in his pickup. That is unless you’re allergic to cats.”

“I’m fine with cats,” Scarlett said.

“She’s fine with cats,” his grandfather repeated, then turned and gave Hunter a wink before starting to the door.

“That doesn’t mean—” Hunter started.

“But I don’t know if Joey should—” Scarlett called after them at the same time, but the old man and young boy were already out of the café, dancing and hollering in the rain as they made their way to his pickup.

“It’s not far to the house,” Hunter said, hoping that was some consolation to her.

She looked at him as if it wasn’t enough. “I don’t usually let Joey ride with strangers.”

Hunter nodded. “My grandfather is a safe driver.”

There was nothing to be done about it now, anyway, Hunter thought. He could hear his grandfather’s pickup pulling away from the café.

“I’m a good driver, too,” he added.

She looked at him. “I saw the fender.”

“Well, yes, but...” Hunter put his hat on his head and let his words fade away. He’d already told her about the fencing mishap with the barbed wire. He wasn’t usually so careless, he thought as he reached for the doorknob. He didn’t want to start making excuses, though. No telling where that would lead. They couldn’t get to that house fast enough to suit him.

He bent and picked up the cat, draping it over his shoulder.

Then he picked up one of the old newspapers Linda had set on a chair by the door. After he unlatched the door, he opened the paper and formed a tent over all of their heads.

“We’ll have to hurry,” he said. “This paper won’t last long in a downpour like this.”

For all his concern, he couldn’t make himself walk fast. The smell of the damp earth mixed with the faint scent of lilac from Scarlett’s hair. He supposed it was only shampoo, but then she looked up at him with her moss-green eyes as though she was frozen in time as much as he was. Most of the rain was running off the newspaper, but a stray drop hit her cheek. That made her blink and she lost her hazy look.

“I won’t melt, you know,” she snapped as if the rain was his fault and started walking faster, taking firm strides toward his pickup.

He had to move some to keep up with her. The cat dug its claws into his shirt although it was careful to not go deep enough to catch his skin.

“You didn’t hear what Mrs. Hargrove said, did you?” he finally asked as he tried to keep the newspaper and the cat both balanced.

“Mrs. who?” She stopped. She was at the pickup, but she didn’t turn to meet his eyes.

“The woman in the café,” he answered, guiding her to her side of the pickup. “The one that got Joey started on birds.”

“Oh.” Scarlett reached for the handle on his pickup door. “I didn’t get a chance to talk to her. She was your friend, wasn’t she? The one you mentioned.”

With that, Scarlett opened the passenger door. The cat jumped onto the seat. That didn’t stop the woman, though; she just swung herself up and nudged the feline over to Hunter’s side.

It was just in time, too, Hunter thought as the newspaper split from the weight of the rain that had collected on top of it. Water poured down on his hat. He took that as a clear message he should be minding his own business and not worrying about some woman.

At least the cat had had the courtesy to move herself down to the floor instead of getting his seat all wet. Inside the pickup, he saw Scarlett adjust the visor on her half of the window. She probably hadn’t even noticed that he’d gotten drenched trying to save her from the damp.

Well, he thought, being a gentleman was overrated. All he could do was get her out to that house so she could see how much work it would take to make it even close to livable. His grandfather had really gotten them into a mess this time.

Although, Hunter thought as he walked around the pickup, he sure wished he’d had a chance to meet the old man’s Maggie. He had a feeling his grandfather was still half in love with the woman. If she was anything like her granddaughter, Hunter could see why he felt that way. That, when he thought about it, should be a warning to him. The Murphys and the Jacobsons had a long way to go before they were ready to be fond of each other. He doubted Scarlett would ever forgive them once his grandfather’s plans, whatever they were, were all laid bare.

In fact, he told himself as he turned the key in the ignition, he would likely not see her after today, not when she saw the state of the house she’d come all this way to claim.

He couldn’t help notice that she had leaned over to pet the cat, though, so she had some feelings in her cold heart. The cat curved her head into the woman’s hand, asking for more petting, completely ignoring Hunter. Females, he thought in disgust, whether human or feline, were a fickle lot.

Chapter Three

S
carlett stood inside the clapboard house on the flat plain near where the Dry Creek flowed and watched a handful of leaves blow across the faded linoleum that covered the kitchen floor. The back door was open wide. To her delight, there were several trees, two pines and one that looked like an oak, standing firm around this house. A few shrubs joined them. Cobwebs hung from the light fixtures and the front panel was off the old refrigerator, but when she looked through the window again, the sky was an azure blue that took her breath away.

She looked over at Hunter who was standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the hall with an expression of dismay on his face. The cat was circling around his feet. Joey and the elder Jacobson had gone out to check on the condition of the nearby barn.

“I didn’t remember it being this bad,” Hunter confessed as he bent to pick up the cat. “It’s been a while since I’ve been inside.”

Scarlett had expected the layers of dust, but she had been taken back by the damp circles on the ceiling. A new roof would be expensive. Still, she wanted the place.

“The floor seems sound.” She walked across it again to see if she felt any softness. They had come in through the kitchen door because neither Hunter nor his grandfather had the key that went to the more formal entrance off the living room. They’d had to walk through lots of mud to get to the house since there was no grass and not many rocks around. By the time winter came it would be frozen solid. It would be next spring before she could plant much of anything and expect it to grow.

“The place likely needs to be condemned,” Hunter said as he stepped inside. She had already scraped her feet on the mat that stood by the door and he did the same.

The floor didn’t creak under his weight. That was a good sign, she told herself.

“Don’t think you can talk me out of it,” she said as she turned to face him. “My grandmother told me to trust myself when I was here and no one else.”

“I’m sure she just meant not to believe everything my grandfather says,” Hunter said. “I’m on your side.”

“Since when?” She raised an eyebrow in disbelief and then turned back to her inspection.

He didn’t answer.

The sky was changing by the minute, she saw looking out. Now a beam of white light, the kind that comes after a storm, streamed in through the open door. The air inside the house had been stale, but the fresh air was blowing it away.

“Why, there’s a rainbow,” Scarlett said as she glanced through the window beside the door. She could see the curve of arch in the top panes since they were cleaner than the others due to the large overhang on the roof that protected them.

She looked at Hunter. His dark hair was still damp and plastered close to his scalp.

She had pretended not to notice the newspaper he’d held over her because she didn’t want him doing any more courtesy things for her. But she would have to be blind not to notice he’d been drenched as he’d helped her to his pickup earlier. His shirt was still drying on his shoulders and, other than a few wrinkles, appeared the same as it had before. He’d left his hat in the pickup and she liked the openness of his eyes. She could see them more clearly than before and noted there were touches of hazel with the gray. She had to admit he had kind eyes when he wasn’t trying to warn her about everything. But then the best con men probably did have friendly eyes, she thought as she saw the cat purring in Hunter’s arms as he stroked its fur. A con man would have suffered a drenching, too, if it meant getting into the good graces of someone he was setting up.

She suddenly found her suspicions tiring. She couldn’t avoid being taken in by just keeping her nerves on edge. The problem was that the two men in her life who had been most dear to her—her father and her husband—had both left her. And it wasn’t as though they had agonized over their decision to do so. Their lives hadn’t appeared to even be saddened by their decision. That did not bode well for her judgment when it came to men. But, on the other hand, no one—male or female—offered something for nothing.

The cat’s ears perked up suddenly and it jumped to the floor.

“Here, kitty.” Scarlett bent and held out her fingers as she called to the cat. To her satisfaction, the feline came over to lick her hand before wandering off to the hallway.

Hunter only raised his eyebrow. “Those calicos are shameless. They’ll go to anyone.”

She smiled as she straightened. “I think she smelled the nut bar you gave me earlier.”

He shook his head. “They have no pride.”

The cat ran into the back of the house.

“My granny might have been warning me about your grandfather...” she said, going back to their previous conversation. “But you don’t need to worry. He won’t succeed. A legal document isn’t that easy to break.”

Now that she thought about it, her grandmother should have warned her about Hunter. She supposed he was about the age his grandfather had been when he was in Nome courting her grandmother.

“I’ll call my attorney in Miles City,” Hunter said. “He’ll find the loopholes.”

“I told you I don’t have money to pay an attorney.”

“I’ll take care of the bill.”

“Well, then, he’s your attorney,” she explained in exasperation. “The man knows who he works for.”

Maybe she felt so stirred up about this because she was uncertain about everything.

“I’ll tell Edward Monroe that he’s working for you,” Hunter said. “I’ll even step out of the room so you can ask him anything you want in private.”

“What’s the catch?” she asked.

“You cannot think I want to see my grandfather cheat you,” he said with passion.

Scarlett shrugged. “You could be working with him.”

All of the emotion left Hunter’s eyes. He didn’t like her saying that. But he was right that she shouldn’t trust too easily.

“I’ll talk to Mr. Monroe whether you go with me or not,” Hunter said, his voice not revealing any emotion. “His office is in Miles City, but some weeks he comes out to church in Dry Creek. He might be there tomorrow and be willing to meet with us after the service. I’ll call him and find out.”

“I guess we can do that if you want,” Scarlett agreed. “Joey and I fly back to Seattle on Monday afternoon. Then we take the red-eye to Nome. We’ll have to go to Miles City to get a hotel tonight, but we can drive back in the morning.”

He didn’t answer right away.

“There’s no need to go to a hotel,” he finally said, his voice flat but polite. “We have plenty of room at the main house. I’m sure my grandfather expects you to stay with us.”

She didn’t answer and he continued.

“Two extra bedrooms, in fact. One for you and one for Joey. Each of my brothers has a room that they seldom use anymore.”

He looked strained after he made his offer.

“I don’t want to put you out.” Maybe she shouldn’t have accused him like that.

He had made the suggestion as if he expected her to refuse it. She didn’t have much money for travel, but she’d planned it out and included a couple of nights in a hotel. Her pride was worth that price.

“The rooms are just sitting empty,” Hunter said then, looking at her. Maybe it was determination that made his gray eyes appear hard. “People will wonder if you don’t stay with us.”

Ah, so that was it. “What people?”

He ran his hands through his hair. “News travels fast. The people around here will already know my grandfather is up to one of his schemes. If you don’t stay with us, they’ll say we are inhospitable on top of everything else.”

“And what will they say if you’re right and the attorney finds something wrong with the contract?”

He didn’t answer for so long that she thought he wasn’t going to.

“They’ll say the Jacobson men are up to their old tricks,” Hunter murmured. “They’ll remind people to stay away from us. Not that anyone has forgotten.”

He looked at her then and she could see the distress in his eyes.

“Surely they don’t blame you and your brothers,” she said.

He shrugged. “We’re used to it. They say the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

They were both silent for a bit.

“Well, you’re not going to make me change my mind,” she told him as much for herself as for him. “I have to get this place for my family.”

The cat was back and it meowed at her feet. She picked it up.

Hunter looked surprised. “You don’t need to hold her. She might scratch.”

Scarlett petted the cat. “I think she likes me. I hope you’re not trying to change her mind, too.”

“I have no intention of changing your mind,” Hunter assured her grimly. “You’ll change it all on your own when the lawyer explains things.”

Scarlett nodded and looked out the window.

“I can already see where my grandmother will plant her roses,” she said as she took a step closer to the window. The cat was purring against her chest now. “She’s always wanted to grow some yellow ones and it’s too cold in Nome. I’d like to put in some grass so Joey can play, too.”

She turned to him and Hunter nodded as if he understood.

“Grass doesn’t grow easy here,” he cautioned her.

“I’m persistent.”

“I suppose the idea of it is too much to give up yet,” he admitted.

Scarlett, shifting the cat in her arms to be more comfortable, walked over to the doorway leading into the rest of the house. An old sofa, tufts of cotton coming out of it, sat along a wall in the living room. Sagging lace curtains hung over a large picture window. One of the hooks must be missing, she decided, because a corner of the lace panel hung almost all the way to the floor. An upright piano, a few of the keys chipped, hugged a wall.

“You play piano?” she asked.

“No.” Hunter followed her into the room. “My grandmother did. She died before...” he hesitated “...before we moved in with my grandfather. But we heard about her. He told us she would play classical music at night that was so sweet even the cows wandered close enough to listen.”

“My grandmother plays, too,” Scarlett said with a chuckle. “Not classical, but dancing music. I haven’t noticed any wildlife listening to her, but she loves the piano. Me... I didn’t inherit her talent. Not patient enough, I guess. Growing up, I wanted to be outside doing almost anything instead of practicing. My sister Carly takes after her and plays beautifully. It’s what got her through—”

Scarlett stopped herself. She’d decided on the flight down here that the Jacobsons didn’t need to know her family’s business.

“Through some hard times.” Scarlett finished the sentence.

She didn’t explain further and Hunter didn’t ask.

“The bedrooms in this house are down the hall,” he finally said as he gestured her forward. “There are three—my grandfather had one, I had one and my two younger brothers shared.”

Scarlett shook off her painful memories and chuckled softly as she started down the hall. “Your brothers probably hated you for having a room to yourself.”

“They claimed they did,” he said with a quick look at her. “But it made them closer to each other for all their griping.”

He sounded wistful. His face didn’t reveal any past sorrows, though, so Scarlett decided she’d imagined it. Then the cat stirred in her arms. When Scarlett let the feline down, it walked over to Hunter and started rubbing against his ankles.

“So which room was yours?” she asked.

He pointed to the far one on the left.

The door opened easily. The windows were cleaner in this room than they had been in the rest of the house. She figured it might be because they faced the east and Hunter had told her that most of the rain came from the west or down from Canada to the north.

“Hardwood floor,” she muttered in approval. “That will polish up nice.”

A yellowed poster of some rodeo rider still hung on the wall with a thumb tack in each corner.

“I always had a big piece of carpet over the floor,” Hunter said. “Kept the room warmer in the winter. There’s a basement under the house, but it’s not finished or heated. So the floor is cold.”

A twin bed, without a mattress, was pushed toward the wall. The cat went over and jumped up to balance on the springs. A bookshelf had been nailed to the wall above the bed. An old blue ribbon, the kind they gave away at state fairs, was tacked to the edge of the shelf.

“Four-H,” Hunter said when he saw what she was looking at. “I raised a calf one year to compete.”

“Nice,” she said.

He nodded but didn’t say anything more.

“A new coat of paint will make the room good enough to use,” Scarlett said. “It has strong light. And with a soft chair in the corner there, someone can sit in the winter and read.”

She looked up at Hunter, forgetting for a moment that he wouldn’t share the satisfaction she felt in knowing the house was basically sound. Indeed, he was looking worried.

“It might all come to nothing,” he reminded her.

“I’m not getting my hopes up,” she said, although she likely was.

The cat meowed and jumped down from the bed.

“If you come back, I’m going to set up an account for you at the hardware store in Dry Creek,” Hunter said.

“Not ‘if.’
When,
” she corrected him.

He continued as though she hadn’t spoken. “Knowing you, you’re going to go ahead regardless of what the attorney says. It might take some time to work the details out if we need to go to court. I don’t want you spending any of your money. Order any building supplies you need through the hardware store and they’ll charge it to the Jacobson Ranch. We have an account.”

She searched his face to see if he was telling her the truth.

“In the end, if you don’t get the house, we’ll pay you for your time,” Hunter said. “Any work you do, keep track.”

He was being too generous.

“Is that how you’re going to trap me?” she finally asked. “Pay for stuff and then claim I owe you some ridiculous amount for plaster and paint.”

“Are you listening to me?” Hunter said, sounding exasperated. “I’m not trying to trick you with anything. It’s my grandfather who does things like that. I’ve never cheated anyone in my life.”

“So you say,” Scarlett said. “I don’t really know either of you.”